Safe and Sound
by CaptainKatie643
Summary: Cato is from District 12. What will happen when the 2 meet? Will sparks fly or will they be enemies? What will happen when the Games comes between them? Kato story
1. Chapter 1

Safe and Sound-Chapter 1

**In this story, Katniss and Prim are older when their father was still alive. Katniss is 13, Cato is 13 also and Prim is 9.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own THG**

**Katniss' POV**

I walked into the meadow that had just started to sprout dandelions. I inhaled the fresh scent and set my basket down on the ground. I sat on my knees next to it and set to the task of picking dandelions for a salad for dinner. My father was out hunting and I was jealous. He wouldn't let me go for some reason. But then I got stuck with this job. My mother and Prim were cleaning the house or something. I really didn't want to know so I just took the job that my mother gave me and came to the meadow.

_Maybe dandelion picking wasn't such a babyish job for a 13 year old_, I thought.

There weren't many dandelions in the meadow to begin with so I tried to salvage as much as I could. The number of dandelions were getting scarce so I left some still in the ground so that there would be more dandelions soon.

I was just finishing up when a figure runs up behind me and grabs my basket before I can even comprehend what is happening. I whipped my head around to see a large muscular boy running off with my basket, with our _food._

I got up from my spot on the ground and ran as fast as I could after him. He wasn't going to steal my perfect dinner.

I finally caught up with him and tackled him to the ground, spilling the dandelions all over the ground. He was much slower than I was because he was carrying the basket so it was easier than I expected to catch him. I was straddling his stomach while he lay there looking at me with wide blue eyes. He must have been from the richer part of District 12 because he didn't seem as hungry as a Seam boy would be.

"What were you thinking?" I screamed at him. I started to punch him but he must have had more experience than I did because he easily blocked them. "Do you have any idea how much food means here?!" I was weak with hunger so he easily flipped me over and straddled me and pinned my arms down. My head hit the ground pretty hard when I went down. I was pinned.

We both just held our positions, staring at each other. Our chests were heaving from running and fighting.

"Calm down! Jeez, it was just a joke. My friends dared me to do it." He said pointing over to a group of boys. They were laughing and rolling around in the grass. Probably making fun of me for being so stupid and overreacting for someone just trying to have fun. I still glared at them. I recognized Gale Hawthorne and Peeta Mellark and some other boys I have seen around town and school.

"Get off me." I spat at him. I was angry that he humiliated me like that. He didn't know how we were almost starving here in the Seam. At least he had enough money to be healthy enough to not have a growling stomach every night. We were even breaking the law to get food!

His eyes widened when he saw the anger in mine. He rolled off of me and stood up. He held his hand out to help me up but I ignored it and started to pick up the dandelions that had fallen out and put them back in the basket. I rubbed the spot where my head had hit the ground and figured it would be ok, I would have mother look at it when I got home.

The boy rolled his eyes at me and sat on his knees to help me pick up the dandelions. I secretly smiled to myself. A boy was actually helping me and being nice to me. I had been a misfit in school, no one talked to me and especially not boys.

"Sorry for stealing these dandelions and spilling them everywhere, and hitting your head on the ground." He said. I looked at him, studying him closely. He had short cropped blond hair that sort of spiked up in the front. He had deep blue eyes and muscles that were quite large for someone his age. In general, he was handsome.

"What are you staring at?" He asked me, smirking. I blushed and looked back at the ground and continued with the dandelions.

"Oh, nothing much." I said, laughing as he realized what my comment meant.

"Hey! Admit it, you think I'm cute." He said, pushing me a little with his elbow. He was smiling now and I was happy. I had never been actually happy with someone other than my family.

"No way, I would never admit that. You aren't even close to cute." I said, lying and weakly defending myself.

"Well, I think you're not half bad." I blushed at his comment. "What's you name dandelion girl?"

"Katniss Everdeen. What about you, pretty boy?" I asked him, smiling.

"Cato Stone." He laughed at his new nickname.

We argued/talked back and forth like that for awhile, making witty comments and laughing, until his friends came over.

"Hey, are you guys done making out over here? Or do you need more time?" Said one of the boys I recognized from school. I blushed and glared at him. What made a boy think that we were making out when we were clearly just talking?

"We were _not_ making out." I said, glaring at the boy. I stood up with the basket of dandelions in my arms. "Now, if you'll excuse me. I should be on my way." I told them. I said goodbye to Cato and hit the boy's shoulder as I passed him.

I decided that I like Cato Stone. He was cute, funny, nice and strong. Maybe I would visit him tomorrow. My father surely knows where he lives. Maybe I could bring him some leftover meat that my father hunts tonight. I should show him the woods! He would like that; I could show him how to hunt too!

I put the basket on my hip and happily walked home.

**Cato's POV**

My friends and I watched Katniss as she walked away from us. I knew we were all watching her butt in those tight hunting pants as she walked away because I had to say 'guys!' a couple times before they all turned to me.

"Hey, keep your eyes up where they should be." I told them, defending Katniss even thought I was just as guilty as they were.

"Not our fault you picked up a hot girl." Said my friend Jaimes. "You going to see her tomorrow?"

"I don't know." I said trailing off into thought.

"You're lucky, Cato. I've been wanting to talk to Katniss since forever." Said Peeta. I rolled my eyes at him, we all knew about Peeta's little crush but he never got the guts to ask her out.

"Then why didn't you do it before?" I asked him, getting a little defensive over Katniss now that I decided that I liked her.

"I don't know. I didn't think she would like someone like me." He said, rubbing the toe of his shoe on the grass.

"Whatever, I'm going home. My mom's making chicken pot pie tonight." I told them. "Want to meet here tomorrow?"

"Sure." I heard them say. I started to walk in the direction of my house.

I should see Katniss tomorrow. She seemed sort of into me, but you can never tell with girls.

**Peeta's POV**

I sighed when I saw Katniss Everdeen sitting in the meadow full of dandelions. She looked so pretty, I wish I had the nerve to talk to her. But then Cato got in the way of my precious Katniss and my view was blocked. I scowled.

"Oh, lighten up, Peeta. He's just going to mess with her, not make out with her." Said my friend Jaimes. I kept a scowl on my face anyway.

I stood there with my hands in my pockets, watching Katniss chase Cato and tackle him. I laughed as I watched her beat him up. But I returned to my scowl when I saw him sit on top of her, pinning her to the ground. I'm glad that Cato got beat up, he deserved it. He knew that I liked Katniss and he had no right going to her and being mean. Then I saw them sitting on the ground picking up the dandelions, I sighed, that was what we should look like. She shouldn't be near that monster of a friend.

Jaimes started to walk up to them and Gale and I walked behind him. Gale didn't look to happy about Cato and Katniss either. I knew he had a thing for Madge, the mayor's daughter, but I think he secretly like Katniss also.

"Hey, are you guys done making out over here? Or do you need more time?" Asked Jaimes with a smirk on his face. I rolled my eyes at him. Katniss frowned and defied his question.

"We were _not_ making out. Now, if you'll excuse me. I should be on my way." She said and hit Jaimes' shoulder when she walked away. I smiled, there was my Katniss.

I should visit her; maybe bring her fresh bread from the bakery. If I could get some without my mother beating me. Oh well, I will decide that tomorrow.

**Please review!**


	2. Chapter 2

Safe and Sound-Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: I don't own THG**

**Katniss' POV**

I woke up the next morning later than usual. I wasn't going hunting today because I wanted to visit Cato. But when I tried to leave the house, my mother always found a chore for me to do. It was so frustrating! I was getting to the point where I had to go into the woods by myself to calm down.

"Ok, mom. I'm heading out now! See you later." I said after I finished sweeping the floor. I tried to make a run for it but she caught me on my way out.

"Katniss, I need you to wash the dishes." Said my mom. I was starting to get madder.

"But I already did chores today! I wanted to go out to spend time with a friend today! It's not fair!" I complained, crossing my arms.

"Fine, but when you get back, you have to help Prim with the garden, ok?" She said, a grin spread across my face.

"Thank you!" I exclaimed and ran over to her and hugged her. I was about to run out of the house but my mother caught my arm. I scowled at her, she just laughed at me.

"I can't see where this wild side of you came from! Maybe it was your crazy grandfather." Laughed my mother as my scowl grew deeper. "Anyway, who is this friend you are so excited to see?"

"Oh, no one in particular. Just someone I met yesterday." I said, trying to not make it a big deal. I guess that earlier, I was so excited to go see Cato, I couldn't contain myself. But now I was being more careful. My mother quirked her eyebrow at me.

"Alright, but be careful. I want you to be home by 3:00." She told me. I nodded and headed out the door. I had a watch that was a gift from my parents for my 10th birthday. They wanted me to be able to tell what time I had to be home since I spent so much time in the woods. It was about 10:00 right now so that should give me enough time with Cato.

When I was out of her sight, I started running. Running was one of my favorite things. It made me feel free. With the wind blowing in my hair and face, I felt like I was flying. I flew past the rest of the Seam houses and into town. That was where I had to slow down because of all the people but I still zigzagged my way through.

As I passed the bakery, I caught a glimpse of blond hair through the window. Its blue eyes quickly disappeared deeper into the bakery when I looked into the window. _Strange_, I thought. It sort of reminded me of Peeta but why would Peeta be staring out a window at me? I started at a jog again when I got into the areas where there were more houses.

I knew where Cato lived now because I asked my dad last night. He didn't ask me anything, which I was grateful for, but I still think that he thinks that I like Cato now. He told me that he sometimes sells rabbits to them. I found his house and took a deep breath before walking up to the front door.

I knocked on it with my fist and couple times before standing back. I waited for someone to come and open the door. I was about to knock again but a brown haired girl opened the door before I had the chance. The girl was very pretty; she had dark brown eyes and almost black hair. She had freckles dotting her face and a full bottom lip. The only bad thing is that she held a knife in her hands and she had an annoyed expression on her face.

"What do you want?" She asked, leaning against the door frame and playing with the knife in her hands. My eyes widened and I involuntarily took a step back.

"I was looking for Cato, is he here?" I asked, trying to stare into this girl's eyes without being intimidated. He mouth curled up into a smirk.

"Oh, so your Cato's girlfriend." She said, twirling the knife. "He told me all about you last night."

"I'm not Cato's girlfriend. I met him yesterday. I just wanted to talk to him." I said, blushing a little bit.

"You're really bad at lying, you know?" She said, still twirling her knife.

"And you don't make good impressions." I shot back.

"I'm starting to like you, braid girl. Come inside." She said with a small smile on her face. I was still apprehensive about this girl. I wasn't sure if she was going to stab me or be friends with me. I walked into her house behind her and shut the door behind me. I stood there looking around me in awe; their house was much nicer than ours.

"Well are you just going to stand there like a fish or are you going to come sit down?" Asked the girl before plopping down on a couch. I walked over to where she was and sat down a couple feet away from her. "I'm not going to hurt you, you know."

I blushed that she had noticed how fearful I was of her.

"It's ok though. I like it when people are scared of me. It makes me feel like I have something special." Said the girl and I blinked at her. "Oh, my name's Clove by the way."

"Katniss, and thanks for telling me. I wasn't sure if you were going to stab me with that or what." I said humorously. She smiled at me.

"So, where's Cato?" I asked, getting back to why I came here.

"He's out with some friends; I think he's in the meadow." Said Clove, she was now digging under her finger nails with her knife.

"Oh ok, thanks. And are you his sister or something?" I asked, getting up from the couch.

"I'm his cousin, my parents died when I was young so I have lived here ever since." She replied, not even looking up at me or hesitating when she talked about her parents' death.

"Oh, well thanks. I guess I'll see you around." I said and she waved me goodbye.

I walked out the front door and headed to the meadow. This time, I walked. When I passed the bakery, the blond haired blue eyed person wasn't there anymore. I got to the edge of the meadow and saw Cato, Peeta, Jaimes, and Gale all sitting on the ground in a circle. I hesitated before walking towards them.

"Hey, Katniss!" Said Cato when he spotted me walking towards them. Well there was no turning back now.

"Hey, Cato!" I said and waved. When I got to their group I kept standing up, I didn't know if I was going to stay or not.

"Hey, Katniss." Said Jaimes. Gale waved and Peeta only glanced at me.

"Hey, guys." I said.

"So, what are you doing here?" Asked Cato. I didn't want to tell everyone that I was looking for him but I'm sure that he would find out sometime.

"Well, I just wanted to hang out with you guys today. Is that alright?" I asked. All 4 of them exchanged glances before agreeing. But then Jaimes whispered something into Gale's ear and Gale passed it to Peeta.

"Hey, Peeta and Gale, you guys want to grab something to eat at my house? My mom just went grocery shopping." Said Jaimes, it was an obvious attempt to get me and Cato alone.

"Sure!" Exclaimed Gale and Peeta just mumbled an 'ok'. Peeta sure was a quiet person. They got up and said goodbye to us.

"Bye, Catnip." Said Gale, I gave him a confused look. "It sounds like your name."

"Oh!" I said, laughing. "Thanks for the nickname."

He nodded and followed Jaimes.

"Bye, Katniss." Said Peeta, shyly.

"Bye, Peeta." I responded. It was weird how he acted around me. Peeta walked off with the rest of the boys and it left me with Cato.

"He likes you, you know." Said Cato, once they were out of earshot. My forehead wrinkled in confusion.

"No way. Peeta wouldn't like someone like me. I'm just a Seam girl. I still wonder why you even look at me." I said, sitting down across from him.

"You would be surprised, Katniss. You have no idea the effect you can have." He said, looking deep into my gray eyes with his dark blue ones. I rolled my eyes at him.

"Alright, whatever you say." I told him. I leaned back and lay on the ground, looking up at the clear blue sky. It was sort of like Cato's eyes. "I met your cousin by the way. She has quite the impression." I said uneasily.

"That's Clove for you." Laughed Cato. It was silent for a minute before I talked again.

"She said that you talked all about me last night." I said, a smirk forming on my face. I tilted my head up to see a red Cato. My smirk grew.

"I did not! She must have heard about you somewhere else." He said, his face still pink.

"Sure." I said, dragging the word out. My face now smiling.

"At least I didn't come looking for you at your house." He teased. My face then turned red.

"I bet you were thinking about it!" I shot back, my face still red.

"I actually was." He answered and it got quiet.

"Really?" I asked him after awhile.

"Yeah." He said, and I felt him lay down next to me. "I've actually started to admire you and your personality."

"Are you serious?" I asked, smiling nervously, propping myself up on one arm, facing him.

"Yeah, why wouldn't I be? Your head strong, brave, smart, funny, nice, sweet and beautiful." He admitted, turning his head to look at me. I blushed a little.

"Thanks, Cato. I guess that I admire you too." I said, still looking down at him.

He smiled at me and I lay back down on the grass. I stared up at the sky, watching the clouds float by in the soft breeze. I closed my eyes and basked in the warm sun on my skin. I then remembered that I wanted to take Cato into the woods.

I turned my head to the side and saw that Cato had been staring at me. He smiled at me, unashamed. I just smiled softly.

"Want to go to a cool place that I like to relax in and have fun?" I asked him, my mouth widening into a grin.

"Sure, I guess." He answered, looking at me unsure.

"Come on! It'll be fun!" I said, grabbing his hand and jumping up from my spot, pulling him up into a sitting position. I tried to pull him up but he was just too big and he laughed at me while I struggled. He stood up and let me lead him to the fence.

"Um, Katniss? Where exactly are we going?" He asked, his eyebrows crinkling at me. I just grinned at him.

"Just trust me." I answered, listening to the fence to see if it was electrified.

I heard no hum and I reached my hand out to lift up the wire. I stepped under while still holding Cato's hand. He stayed on the other side, watching me with his mouth open.

"Come on, Cato. You'll catch flies." I said, giggling, reaching through the fence and pushing his jaw upwards. I gently yanked his hand and he hesitantly went under the fence.

"See, that wasn't so bad." I said, pulling him into the woods.

"Wait, so your cool place is in the woods?" He asked me, I could hear the wonder in his voice.

"Yup." I answered. I kept leading him to my father's hiding spot for our bows.

"And you don't ever get caught or hurt?" He asked.

"We don't get caught but you can get hurt. The fence is usually not electrified so I never get hurt from that but I occasionally fall out of a tree or get stung by a bee or get poison ivy. Just regular stuff." I responded, still casually walking through the forest.

"I mean get hurt from animals." He said, clarifying himself. A wide grin spread across my face, I knew he couldn't see it because he was a couple steps behind me because I was leading. I was just waiting for him to ask me that.

"You'll see why we don't get hurt from animals." I said, my walk increasing in speed.

He didn't question me but I could tell he was confused and probably a little scared. But I think he trusted me because he kept following me deeper into the woods.

When we got to the tree where my father kept our bows and arrows, I released his hand. It felt weird against the cool air since the heat from his hand was warming mine.

Cato looked around with a questionable look on his face but I ignored him and continued my steady pace to the tree. I grabbed the bow out and a sheath of arrows along with it. I slipped the sheath over my shoulder and faced Cato.

His face had a look of wonder and confusion on his face but I found it quite amusing. I smirked at him as he continued to stare at my bow and arrows.

"You can use a bow and arrow?" He asked, staring at it in disbelief.

"Yeah, my dad taught me. It's a better way to get food." I answered, running my hand along the smooth wood of the bow. "Come on, I'll show you the lake and everything."

"Will I get to see you shoot?" He asked as he followed me.

"Sure, but you have to be quieter." I said, lowering my voice and pointing to his feet.

"Oh, sorry." He whispered, smiling sheepishly.

I turned away and Cato followed me, his footsteps quieter than before but he still made the occasional crack of a stick or crunch of a leaf. I loaded an arrow into the bow and scanned the forest. I spotted a small squirrel pausing to eat a nut on a tree branch.

I put my hand out behind me to stop Cato from moving any further but I kept my eyes on the squirrel. I raised my bow up and aimed. I inhaled and released the string, sending the arrow flying right into the squirrel.

It fell off the tree branch and into the bushes. I ran after it and pulled its body out of the dense brush. The arrow was straight through the eye and I took it back to Cato. He was watching me with amazement in his eyes.

"You are amazing Katniss. You shot it right through the eye! You have to teach me." Said Cato, looking at the dead squirrel.

"It is my specialty." I smiled.

**Also, I made a blog so you can see what's going on with my stories or why I'm not updating. The link is on my profile.**


	3. Chapter 3

Safe and Sound-Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: I don't own THG**

**Katniss' POV**

The sound of the tight string of the bow twanged and an arrow whizzed through the air, flying way off target once again. Cato growled angrily and I laughed at how far off his aim was and his frustration. I was using the smaller bow to show Cato how to shoot the arrow correctly and he was using my bow. I wanted to flinch every time his large hand clenched down on the wooden handle but I refrained. Cato wouldn't break something of mine.

"You have to have better form. Stand up straighter." I ordered, chuckling from his angry expression. We were running out of arrows since Cato hadn't landed a single one in the designated tree and they all were in the woods somewhere.

"I am standing up straight." He said, his voice low and aggravated. I rolled my eyes at him and went to retrieve the arrows. "Wait! Katniss, I didn't mean it! I was kidding, I was just angry that I couldn't do it. I didn't mean to make you mad."

I turned back around and laughed at him. A confused look crossed Cato's face as he watched me laugh at him.

"What?" He asked, his eyebrows crinkling.

"You! I wasn't mad at you; I was going to get the arrows that you shot off into the woods." I explained, still quietly laughing at his misunderstanding. Cato visibly relaxed and I turned back around to get the arrows.

I found all 15 arrows that Cato had shot and they were all deep in the ground. I sighed and made sure that each one was straight and unharmed. My father would kill me if I damaged the arrows or the bow. When I walked through the barrier of bushes that had concealed me, I found Cato looking up at the trees. I watched him, the small rays of sunshine that slipped through the trees landing on his dirty blonde hair. His dark blue eyes shining brightly as he thought about something I didn't know, they stood out against the various shades of green and brown. I finally walked forward and made myself noticed.

"You found them all?" He asked, reaching for the arrow that was in my outstretched hand.

"Yeah, it was so hard. Someone shot them way off target." I teased, smiling at him when he gave me a look.

"I bet that you couldn't even come close to beating me in a sword fight." He said and I glared at him.

"Fine, I bet that you couldn't kill a bird with an arrow." I shot back, crossing my arms at him. I knew it would take him at least a year to be able to shoot a rabbit or squirrel but I doubt he would be able to shoot a bird, it took me 2 years to master it.

"Fine, what do you get if you win?" Asked Cato, the bow and arrow resting at his side. I thought for a minute but Cato came up with an answer before me. "Oh, I know what I'm going to get." He said, smiling mischievously at me.

"And what is that?" I asked, rolling my eyes but curious.

"A kiss." Answered Cato, smiling broadly at me.

"No way, I'm _not _giving you a kiss." I said, looking at him like he was crazy.

"Why? You too chicken?" He asked and I scowled at him.

"Fine, you get a kiss. But I get to teach you how to climb trees." I said, watching Cato's victorious smile falter. "What? You too chicken?"

"No! I just, don't like climbing trees." He growled and pulled the bow into position before releasing the arrow. I laughed when it missed the target again.

I walked towards him, adjusting his stance so that he was standing right. His muscled arms were smooth under my hands as I adjusted his bow. I could feel him relax under my touch but I made sure he got right back to his stance.

"There, now just aim and take a deep breath." I said slowly, backing away from him as he inhaled. "Now, release."

Cato let go of the bowstring and the arrow flew into the target this time. It was in the outer ring but it was in the target. I cheered while Cato smiled.

"One step closer to killing a bird." Called Cato as I went to pull the arrow out of the target. "And one step closer to winning that kiss."

"We'll see about that." I chuckled, sitting back down in my spot and watching him hit the outer ring of the target or the trees over and over again. "In 6 months." I added and Cato tossed me a look that told me he agreed.

~o~0~0~

After Cato had missed the target enough, we set off into the woods. I was taking us to the small pond where my father taught me how to swim and where we spent most of our time while we were in the woods. There was a little abandoned house sitting nearby and we had camped out there one time, Mother almost had a heart attack when we didn't come home that night. She never allowed us to do that again without telling her.

I kept my hand in Cato's as I pulled him along with me through the woods, the familiar trail to the pond clear. Cato groaned as we continued.

"Where are you taking me?" He asked, sounding annoyed. I chuckled, putting a hand on the familiar tree that marked that we were close.

"You'll see." I said and Cato groaned childishly. I laughed and pushed past one more bush, revealing the sparkling blue water of the pond.

Cato was silent, walking past me while keeping my hand in his and taking in the beautiful setting with wide eyes.

"This is amazing, Katniss." He said and I smiled, letting him have a moment to look around before tugging him forward.

"This is the pond that my father takes me to all the time, we spend almost whole days here, swimming, hunting, eating, laughing." I said, a smile brightening my face as I remembered a lot of the good times we had here. We reached the water's edge, our reflections looking back at us.

"Swimming?" Asked Cato, his expression confused. When I turned to look at him, he was looking at me.

"Yeah, you know, getting in the water and moving?" I asked, smiling as Cato gave me a look.

"I know what swimming is, Katniss." He said and I laughed. "But since when do you swim?"

"My father taught me, he took me here when I was little and helped me. He thought it was something I should know how to do. Plus, it's a lot of fun." I explained, taking my boots off and rolling my pant legs up along with my sleeves.

Cato watched me warily as I stepped into the cool water, it was perfect for the weather and wasn't too cold or too hot. I started walking in deeper until the water reached right underneath my rolled up pants. When I looked back at Cato, he hadn't moved. He was just watching me with a complicated look on his face.

"Do you know how to swim?" I asked, looking at him carefully and he shook his head embarrassedly. "Come on, I'll teach you." I said, walking back to the shallower water and holding my hand out.

"You don't have to, really." Said Cato, not taking my hand. I rolled my eyes and put my hand down.

"Take your shoes off." I said, putting my hands on my hips as he gave me a confused look. "Come on." I said, raising an eyebrow as Cato reluctantly removed his shoes and rolled up his pants.

I held my hand out for him to take, which he did, and I softly pulled him into the water. Cato looked a little nervous when I let go and he stood there by himself. I turned around so that my back was facing him and took in a deep gulp of air before diving forward.

"Katni―" I heard before everything was silent except for the sound of water in my ears.

I opened my eyes, the clear water allowing me to see the various plants and rocks sitting at the bottom of the pond along with the fish swimming along the sandy bottom. I kicked my legs like a frog so that they propelled me forward. I kept swimming until I felt pressure against my chest and I had to come up for air.

"Katniss!" Yelled Cato once my head popped up above the water.

"Come out! The water's fine!" I yelled back, treading water since it had gotten noticeably deeper and if I stood up, the water was above my shoulders.

Cato started yelling about me getting hurt and blah blah blah so I rolled my eyes playfully before swimming back to him where he still stood in the shallow water with a glare on his face. I crawled up to him, keeping my stomach in the water as I looked up at him with a smile.

"Katniss, you scared me." He scowled, crossing his arms while I chuckled.

"Cato, you have to get in the water to learn how to swim." I said, splashing a big wave of water directed up at his face. The water dripped from his hair in little diamonds down to his face and soaked into his shirt. I laughed and Cato started laughing along with me.

He started wading in after me, getting to about his waist before getting a little nervous.

"Its fine, you just have to move your arms and legs so that you move where you want to go." I explained, watching as he got into the deeper water before starting to tread water even though he could stand if he wanted to. "Wow, you picked up fast. It took me forever to learn how to hold my breath underwater." I said, watching in amazement as Cato started moving around with his head above water.

"I do have special talents." He joked, giving me a smirk while I rolled my eyes.

He swam closer to me, standing up and grabbing me hand. I thought he was going to pull me into a hug but instead, he yanked me underwater. I yelped in surprise, standing up quickly in the water while Cato laughed. I glared at him, a mischievous look on my face as a snuck up behind him.

While he was still laughing and distracted, I jumped on his back. This caught Cato by surprise and he toppled over and into the water. I smiled at started laughing at his face when he resurfaced. He scowled but I saw his smile shining through.

Soon, we were both laughing and splashing each other in the pond. The sun shining down warmly on us as we played in the pond with huge smiles on our faces.

~o~0~o~

After we had finished swimming, we set off to find some food. Cato was terrible at it; he kept finding poison ivy, poison berries, poison leaves, poison everything. When I showed him the right berry bush to pick, he picked the rotten ones or the unripe ones. And to top it all off, he couldn't stay quiet in the woods to save his life.

In the end, I picked a spot that overlooked the whole entire woods but kept us hidden from any hovercrafts for him to sit while I hunted and gathered.

"I'm not _that_ bad at finding food." Said Cato, lying on his back with his hands behind his head so he could see me. I snorted, keeping my eyes on the dove that I had shot and was now cooking on the fire. It was on a make shift spit and I was slowly turning it over so that it evenly cooked.

"And I'm not that bad at dancing." I said sarcastically, picking the spit up off the fire to put it on the tree stump which served as our table and our plates. The steam wafted up into the air, spreading to our noses which made me lick my lips.

"You can't dance?" He asked and I turned my head to look at him. His eyes were wide with bewilderment and I shook my head. "Really?" He asked and I smiled slightly at his surprise.

"I've never danced with anyone before in my life, and when I have, it's with Prim or when I'm by myself. Even then, I'm terrible." I said, chuckling at the memories of me and Prim spinning around the house while our parents are out. "Prim told me I looked like an awkward duck that had two left feet."

Cato laughed, picking at a leaf in his hands until the leaf was in many pieces. I laughed with him, getting out my knife to cut the dove once our laughter had died down. Cato eyes watched me intently as I cut the dove into even pieces and setting aside the carcass to dispose of later.

I popped a piece of the steaming meat into my mouth, enjoying the warm meat while Cato kept watching me.

"I'll teach you." He said and my eyebrows crinkled. He stood up, walking over to where I was and holding a hand out for me to take.

"What do you mean?" I asked, glancing down at his hand before back up at his face.

"I'll teach you to dance." He said, his hand staying where it was. I bit my lip hesitantly before finally grabbing his hand.

He pulled me up, leading me over to a patch of wildflowers and tall grass. The sun was setting low in the horizon, casting the perfect glow of color around us.

Cato put a hand around my waist while keeping my hand in his. He put my other hand on his shoulder and pulled me close to him. I looked down at our feet while Cato started telling me what to do. After a bit of foot stomping and tripping later, Cato stopped to take a break.

"You _are_ like an awkward duck with two left feet." Said Cato, wiping his forehead and taking a piece of dove that had cooled down. I chuckled but threw a berry at him which he caught and ate.

I sat down next to Cato, leaning into his side while we looked out at the sunset through the trees. Cato put his arm around my shoulder, giving me a more comfortable space to lay my head on.

We sat there for awhile, just listening to the mockingjays and the sounds of nature. The time finally caught up to me and I jumped up from my spot, shoving pieces of food into my mouth before stuffing what I could into my pockets.

"What are you doing, Katniss?" Asked Cato, giving me a strange look while I stomped out the fire.

"One, it's almost night and we are still in the woods. Two, if the sun goes down we have very little chance of getting out tonight. Three, our parents are probably freaking out." I said, placing a pile of food out for Cato to take home. Cato nodded before standing up to put the food into his pockets before following me down the hill and back to where I kept my bow.

"Sorry about the sudden change of plans, I sort of lost track of time." I said once we had reached the fence.

Cato lifted up the wire for me so that I could go under and he followed me.

"It's fine; I had a lot of fun." Said Cato, giving me a smile. I smiled back before we started heading out of the meadow and we arrived at the Seam.

"Well, I guess I'll see you some other time?" I asked, feeling a little glum. I could see that Cato wasn't feeling ecstatic that we were parting ways either.

"Yeah, I guess so." He said, leaning towards me and placing a kiss on my cheek before pulling me into a hug.

I blinked in surprise at his action before wrapping my arms around him as well. I could feel a little blush on my cheeks too.

"Bye, Katniss." Said Cato, giving me a warm smile before turning to walk towards his house.

"Bye, Cato." I said, waving slightly even though he couldn't see me.

I turned to go back to my own house with a skip in my step and a smile on my face. I felt the happiest I had ever felt in a long time.

**Don't forget to review! It warms my heart when I hear how you guys feel about my writing!**


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